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An Open Letter to the Parents of the Children I’m About to Teach…

I post this the night before I take up my first teaching role. This fills me with excitement, but also unbelievable nerves. I believe that if I were completely fine at the prospect of being responsible for a classroom full of children – for both their learning and their general happiness and wellbeing – it would be a cause for concern. The following is an honest account of what I would say to any parents of the lovely children I am about to be fully responsible for, or any parents of children starting a new stage of school.

I will try my best.

I don’t promise that I’ll get it right every time, but I promise that I will do everything in my power to care for your world as best I can.

School is not the same as it was when you were at school. Times have changed, but at the heart of every decision made in school is made to benefit the learners within it.

Don’t compare your child to another. No child or family is the same. I promise they’re not as perfect as you think they are.

Please put your child’s name on everything – it will seem like a faff at first but it will save you a lot of money and me a whole world of stress. Win, win.

Different is not bad.

I will only believe half of what your child says happens at home, if you only believe half of what they say happens at school.

I will treat your child like they are my own while you’re not around.

If you have a concern, please come to me. Hopefully it’s a misunderstanding, but if not we can work together to make it better. If you are genuinely worried, it is not a waste of time.

Similarly, trust me as a teacher. Everything I do will come from a professional and human decision and out of care for your child.

You might see me at the supermarket and I might have wine in my trolley. It’s Friday night and it’s probably not for me. Either way I am human and I have a life. The chocolate will be 100% mine, though. Whoops!

Keep me updated with any changes in your home that may affect your child. I am not here to judge, purely to help care for your child and support you as much as I can.

This turned out to be a list rather than a letter, but I thought it might be slightly less of a preachy ramble this way. This is also just some of the things I would like to say, but I want to keep things general and hopefully helpful.

Is there anything you want to add or ask? Let me know!
‘til next time,